Next up for Pittsburgh is a rematch with AFC North rival Cincinnati at Acrisure Stadium Sunday (4:25 p.m., CBS), as the Steelers will be looking for the season sweep after holding off the Bengals in overtime in Week 1, 23-20.
Head coach Mike Tomlin said he was appreciative of the performance of both the Steelers’ run game and the job the defense did against the run in last week’s 20-10 win over New Orleans.
Pittsburgh (3-6) put together an all-around effort Sunday, racking up 217 rushing yards — the team’s highest output in nearly six years — while holding the Saints to 186 total yards (29 rushing) and keeping them off the scoreboard in the second half after it was tied 10-10 at halftime.
Pittsburgh’s Alex Highsmith was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after recording 5 tackles (3 solo), a pair of sacks and a tackle for loss against the Saints.
The third-year linebacker out of Charlotte, who had team-highs of 9 tackles (6 solo) and 3 sacks in the first meeting against the Bengals, has 8.5 sacks on the season, tied for fourth-most in the league, and has also forced 3 fumbles (tied for second).
“It’s cool,” Highsmith said of the honor before quickly focusing on the bigger picture for the team. “I think the most important thing, we got the win this past Sunday. We’ve got a big week ahead of us with the Bengals, and so I’m just looking forward to continuing to practice and continuing to get ready for this game.”
Having defensive end T.J. Watt and safety Demontae Kazee in the mix against New Orleans provided a huge boost to the entire defense, and it’s looking like the Steelers will continue to add quality depth on that side of the ball once a couple more injured players are ready to go.
Third-round pick DeMarvin Leal, a rookie defensive end out of Texas A&M, was designated to make his return from injured reserve on Wednesday. That means he’ll have 21 days to officially rejoin the roster and add some depth up front.
Starting free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, who missed the Saints game after having his appendix removed, could be back on the field Sunday if given the green light by the medical staff. Tomlin said the team is “optimistic” for his return.
“Reports regarding Minkah and his inclusion this week are really positive,” said Tomlin on Tuesday. “I know he’s already been here and run today. I saw him Sunday at the stadium and, you know, Minkah wanted to play on Sunday. Obviously that wouldn’t be the appropriate thing to do, but that’s just the mentality that he brings.”
The Bengals (5-4) are coming off of their bye week, and Tomlin can relate to how beneficial that can be, particularly a team dealing with significant injuries like his team was two weeks ago, and like Cincinnati is now.
“That always creates a myriad of things to be concerned about as the team that faces them,” Tomlin said. “How they utilized their bye, the self-analysis, the things that you do to shift your personality based on current circumstances, people available to you, people not available to you.
“And so as we lay the foundation for our plan — and we’re familiar with them and they’re familiar with us — that is a component of preparation worth acknowledging.”
Quarterback Joe Burrow, who was sacked a season-high 7 times while tossing a season-high 4 interceptions in the opener against the Steelers, promised in his media availability this week that he won’t repeat that kind of performance this time around. He’s only thrown 2 picks in the eight games since. Tomlin has noticed an uptick in Burrow’s rushing attempts as the season has progressed, and knows that the Steelers must take notice.
“He’s a guy that’s capable of really hurting you with his legs if you don’t give that appropriate attention,” Tomlin said of Burrow’s scrambling ability.
Burrow has completed 70 percent of his pass attempts on the year (233-for-333) for 2,535 yards (fourth amongst NFL QBs) and 18 touchdowns (tied for third). He needs just two more rushing yards to set a new career high for a single season (with eight games to go), and has found the end zone four times on the ground.
Cincinnati star receiver Ja‘Marr Chase has been out since Week 8 with a hip injury, and is listed as out for Sunday’s game as well. Chase leads the team in targets (74), receptions (47), receiving yards (605) and receiving touchdowns (6), all despite playing in two fewer games. In the season-opening loss to Pittsburgh, he hauled in 10 of his 16 targets for 129 yards and a touchdown.
Still, Tomlin is aware of Burrow’s tendency to distribute the touches amongst his other receivers, even when Chase is healthy.
“He does a good job of spreading the ball around and not allowing you to lock in on one particular guy,” said Tomlin. “The way he spreads it makes him difficult — and them difficult — to deal with.”
Wideouts Tee Higgins (58 targets, 41 catches, 564 yards) and Tyler Boyd (49 targets, 37 catches, 537 yards) are both go-to weapons, while tight end Hayden Hurst (48 targets, 38 receptions) and running back Joe Mixon (50 targets, 38 receptions) are both heavily involved in the passing game as well. Mixon is also a high-powered rusher, adding 65 yards per game on the ground. His last time out two weeks ago against the Panthers, Mixon posted season highs of 153 yards and 4 touchdowns on 22 carries to go with 4 receptions for 58 yards and another score.
“Joe’s always a challenge,” Tomlin said of defending Mixon. “He’s tough, he’s got good pick and vision, he finishes off runs, he plays with violence in the secondary. We’ve got to be open to that challenge as well.”
Offensively, Tomlin said the Steelers must control the line of scrimmage against the “thoughtfully aggressive” Cincinnati front seven, and protect rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett as much as possible.
“They won’t hesitate to go all out and come after you,” said the coach. “They did against us, particularly as the game was unfolding in Week 1, and that personality has persisted throughout.”
There’s still hope of the Steelers going on a win streak and putting themselves into the playoff picture, and a second victory over the Bengals Sunday would undoubtedly help jumpstart any such scenario.
Looking past this weekend, four of the next five Steeler opponents currently possess sub-.500 records — next Monday at Indianapolis (4-5-1); Dec. 4 at Atlanta (4-6); Dec. 18 at Carolina (3-7) and Christmas Eve at home against the Raiders (2-7).
The three other games left on the schedule are against divisional foes, two against Baltimore (Dec. 11 in Pittsburgh; New Year’s Day on the road) and the home finale on Jan. 8 against the 3-6 Browns.
Pittsburgh is currently two games back of 5-4 New England for the seventh seed in the AFC.
The Bengals are a 4-point favorite Sunday, as of Thursday afternoon, according to Caesars Sportsbook. Since 1990, Pittsburgh has a 9-3-1 record at home against teams fresh off of a bye.
In regards to the teams’ physical appearance this Sunday, the Steelers will be sporting their black and gold “color rush” uniforms, while the Bengals will go with their white-and-black striped helmet and jerseys.
Injury Report
Nine Steelers appeared on Wednesday’s list, with the good news for Pittsburgh fans being that both Watt (pectoral) and Harris (knee) were full participants in practice. The other seven did not practice, and those players included Fitzpatrick, LB Devin Bush (knee), CB Ahkello Witherspoon (hamstring), OL Kevin Dotson (hip), OL Trent Scott (back), DT Larry Ogunjobi (knee) and LB Marcus Allen (illness).
Update: Thursday’s report showed Fitzpatrick, Harris, Bush, Scott and Allen as full participants, while Dotson and Ogunjobi were marked as limited. Witherspoon and OL Jesse Davis (knee) did not practice, along with Watt and DT Cam Heyward, who took a rest day.
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